Flames of Ice
by Fireflies n Bubblegum
Summary: As a result of interesting events, Katara loses the gaang, and is stuck with Zuko and Iroh. Arguments, Fighting, Brawling and sweet sweet romance. Wooties. Zutara, Taang and Ty lokka. Maybe Sukka... Have yet to decide. Open to suggestions
1. Chapter 1: Watched

Chapter 1: Watched 

Katara lay back on Appa, bending a small amount of water around her hands. She loved the intricacy of water. It's ease of shifting shape, flowing from one formation to another. Katara continued bending with her rhythmic following movements, completely unaware that she was being watched.

A pair of grey eyes spied from the tree tops, taking in every movement the waterbender made. As he watched, he began to feel a gnawing sense of guilt. He shouldn't be there, watching his friend without her knowing. _**It's not like I'm doing anything wrong. All she's doing is lying on Appa.**_

_Yes_,said his conscience, _look at how she's lying. You are just imagining yourself with her, filling in the empty space._

_**I do not. I'm watching to learn.**_

_You mean watching because you yearn. You want her Aang. Admit it._

_**I don't! We're friends.**_

_Indeed. How friendly are you planning to get?_

_**What!? Get out of my head! What I'm doing is not wrong!**_

_She's beautiful, isn't she?_

_**Yea – no! Stop it!**_

"I don't want her!!"

Katara sat up in surprise, causing her water to fall with a splash onto Appa's saddle. "Aang?" She called, startled. The boys and Toph had left to gather food. Toph was supposed to stay with Appa, but had encased Katara in rock until she agreed to switch jobs.

Aang mentally kicked himself. How could he have said that out loud? He was a terrible liar and would have to think fast. Another trait he was not blessed with. _**Aha! I'll pretend I'd been asleep. I'll fall out of the tree and claim I was dreaming!**_

Thus the Avatar fell most unceremoniously from the tree, into a prickle bush below. Apparently aiming while spontaneously falling out of a tree was not one of his forthright gifts either. "Yarg!" Aang emerged from the prickle bush and looked at Katara. He felt a hot flush spread across his cheeks – a sure sign to all that knew him that he was about to tell a mind bogglingly awful lie.

"Oh, hey Katara! I didn't know you were here." Aang mentally kicked himself again. Of course he knew she was there. She knew he knew she was there. His face grew redder. The piercing look she gave him, suspicion written across her face, one eyebrow raised, was not helping his blush.

"Well, of course I knew you were there – I just, er…"

"He was shirking his duties and hiding in a tree."

Aang yelped with surprise, whirling around to see Toph smirking, sightless eyes sparkling with mischief.

"AANG!" An exasperated Sokka burst from the surrounding trees, followed by a huge swarm of bees. "Gerromoff! Gerromoff!" rolled around on the ground in complete hysteria. "Bees! I'm covered in bees!" He cried before rolling and disappearing into the undergrowth. Aang and Katara stared, surprised for a few seconds before collapsing onto the ground in laughter. Toph was already laughing hysterically, but managed to whisper, "Lucky save Twinkle toes." He blushed but pretended he hadn't heard.

Prince Zuko lay on the ground, mindlessly bending a small flame around his fingers. He hated being on the run. He longed for the indoors, the cold tiles of the Fire Nation buildings beneath his feet, the warm wind beating against his face. His home, however, was always that little bit outside his reach. Part of him didn't believe he could ever get home. Only a small part, easily overpowered by Zuko's stubborn determination. "Tea, nephew?" His uncle sat watching him, his expression unreadable. He was holding a teapot poised to pour. This enraged Zuko. _**How could he be thinking about tea?? **_They had to catch the Avatar, and restore the shred of honour he had been left with to its former glory! He sat up and glared at his uncle. "We leave. Now." Iroh sighed, crestfallen. His nephew did this every time he mentioned the word 'tea'. "Are you sure you don't want some tea?" Iroh asked hopefully. "It is very soothing. Helps to clear the mind."

"I don't need a clear mind. I need to capture the Avatar!" Zuko stood up and ran his fingers through the shaggy mop of hair that had grown atop his head. "Come Uncle, we have no time to lose."

Sokka returned to the campsite, covered head to toe in large, painful looking bee stings. "Are you ok Sokka?" Aang asked rushing over. "Me? Oh yeah, I'm fine. I mean, I only got attacked by a WHOLE SWARM OF MANEATING BEES!!!!" Katara rushed over and began healing his wounds, rolling her eyes as he told of his valiant attempts at defeating the beasties. A prickling at the back of her neck told her she was being watched. She looked quickly around but didn't see anyone. Shrugging, she went back to work.

Zuko stomped through the undergrowth, looking for any signs of the Avatar or his monster bison. Pottering along behind him was his uncle, hands resting on his rotund belly, swaying gently to his own humming. Trying to contain his frustration, Zuko whirled on his uncle. "Are you going to help me track the Avatar or not!?" His uncle looked at him and sighed. "Fine Prince Zuko. Turn right here." Zuko looked stunned, but his shock was soon replaced with anger. "You knew where they were but didn't tell me?" His uncle shrugged. "Why not!?" Zuko was on the brink of a temper tantrum. "You looked like you were doing well, so I thought I wouldn't bother you." Zuko roared in frustration, setting trees on fire as he left.


	2. Chapter 2: Bad dream

Chapter 2: Bad dream 

Zuko hid watching as the Avatar played with his freak monkey with the big ears. The watertribe guy sat nearby, cleaning his boomerang. He could take him with his eyes closed. The Avatar, obviously, would be by far more challenging. And where was the waterbender? And the blind one? It would be harder still to take the Avatar if they were to interfere. Especially now that night was falling.

Backing out of his hiding place, Zuko searched for the two female benders. He knew this was a risk – the earthbender seemed to be able to detect him whenever he came near. It was a risk he must take – best to know where all your adversaries are before launching an attack.

He trudged along beside a creek. It was dark now, leaving Zuko with only the moonlight to guide his way. He heard splashing ahead. "Katara, I'm pretty sure you're done now. You just do this because I can't 'see' in water!" Zuko stopped and smirked. _Can't see in water, ay? _He stepped into the creek and continued toward the sound of splashing. He watched as a wet and shivering Toph made her escape, leaving behind a giggling Katara. Zuko hid behind a large rock, ensuring that he was still safely standing in the creek, out of 'sight' of the earthbender.

Katara laughed watching a disgruntled Toph escape into the distance. It was her turn. She removed her dress and trousers, leaving her only in her underwear. Immersing herself in the water, she felt it slide across her skin. She surfaced; shaking her hair free from the plait she usually contained it in. Here, alone in her element beneath the moon, she felt free. Free of her duties to her gang. Her family. Her mother role. Free to be herself. She stepped onto the creek bank and turned towards the water. She had imagined a new technique while lying on Appa earlier and was dying to try it out.

Zuko felt a warm flush creep to his cheeks. There was no honour in watching a girl bathe. Even this water wench. Yet, there was something intriguing about her. About the way she moved, the way her hair sparkled in the moonlight, the way her lithe body seemed to glide through the water. He watched her in fascination, as she closed her eyes and stepped out – onto the water. Her feet rested on the glassy surface, leaving small ripples as she took each step. She went through the movements of battle, though slowly and rhythmically, like a dance. Zuko couldn't take his eyes off here. She could walk on water! He had to admit – she was a powerful bender. A powerful bender that the Avatar to care deeply about. If she were to go missing, he would try to find her, right? Zuko was about to step out from behind the rock when Toph emerged from the bushes again. "Come on Sugar Queen, play time's over." Zuko hid until he was sure they were gone before disappearing to find his uncle.

Zuko had troubled dreams that night. He kept seeing the waterbender dancing on the water, her hair flowing gracefully around her. Zuko stepped out, arm outstretched, asking her to dance. She screamed and turned away. "Leave me! Monster! Hideous monster!" Zuko sat up, breathing heavily. "Are you ok, Nephew?" Zuko turned away from his uncle, so his scar was hidden. "I'm fine Uncle." He lay back down and closed his eyes, willing sleep to take hold once more. Iroh watched for a while, looking at Zuko with an expression of both sorrow and concern.


	3. Chapter 3: Tears, Pain and a Cave

Chapter 3:

Katara walked dreamily back to camp. She had succeeded in walking on water! She didn't know if she wanted to tell the others – in particular Aang. She knew it was selfish – but she enjoyed having abilities that he did not. ON arrival she found that Sokka and Aang were already asleep. "Katara?" surprised, she looked over to where the still sleeping Aang lay. "Katara, I love you." Shocked, Katara turned to speak to Toph, only to find her friend wore a purely heartbroken expression. Katara was filled with guilt. "Toph - "

"I'm going to sleep." Toph brought her foot down hard onto the earth, causing it to leap up and form a rock shack. "Toph, I sear I didn't know! I don't love him that way! He's like a brother! Toph? Toph!"

"As a brother?" Katara closed her eyes in shame. She turned to find an equally heartbroken expression on Aang's face.

"Aang, I didn't mean - "

"Yes you did. It's ok. I'm – going to sleep."

Tears sprung to Katara's eyes as she ran from the campsite. Somehow she'd managed to break the hearts of two of her best friends. One of which wasn't even her fault! Tears streamed down her face as she ran. She didn't know where she was going, nor did she really care. She just ran until she tripped and landed sprawled on the ground – hitting her head on a rock and falling unconscious.

Zuko was out walking. He couldn't take it anymore. Stupid Uncle. Stupid philosophical Uncle. Stupid Uncle who always makes sense even though Zuko didn't want to hear it…

Cue flashback.

"Zuko… I don't think your father ever intended for you to… return to the fire nation." Zuko looked at his Uncle with a mixture of anger and horror on his face. "What? You heard him as did I. He banished me until I captured the Avatar, then I could return." His uncle bowed his head. This would be complicated and painful. "Tea?" The filthy look Zuko shot him gave him his answer. Nodding, Iroh sipped his tea and watched Zuko over the rim. "The Avatar had been gone for one hundred years Zuko. The Fire Lord had not yet heard of his return. Who's to say that the Avatar would have ever returned to us? For all he knew he was dead and gone, leaving a free run for the Fire Nation and annihilation of the other nations." Zuko scowled. "You're wrong!" Iroh sighed, placing his tea on the ground. "Zuko - "

"No. I can see we truly have no more to gain from each other. Goodbye, Uncle."

End flashback.

So that's how Zuko ended up here. Walking. Hating. Mulling over his uncles words, knowing they were true but having too much pride to admit it and return. He was on his own now. What was wrong with him? Why was he such a disappointment? Why couldn't he be a prodigy like Azula? Why did his mother leave? Did he disappoint her too? Shaking his head he kicked a small stone into a nearby bush. And it groaned. Zuko stopped, staring at the bush. It didn't… he tiptoed over to the bush as one might tiptoe around a sleeping lion. Behind it was a pile of blue fabric. With a girl in it. He cocked his head, looking at her. Something familiar… ah. The waterbender. What was she doing here, all alone, without the Avatar? A peal of thunder sounded overhead. Zuko turned and began to run in search of shelter – but a pang of guilt kept him rooted to the spot. He couldn't just leave her there… defenceless, unconscious, in the rain… What was he thinking? Of course he could! He was a Fire Nation prince. He shouldn't mingle with peasants. Mercy was a sign of weakness… but that would be like Azula. Azula would leave her there. Azula would kill her and leave her there to be eaten by the ants. Sighing, Zuko hoisted Katara onto his shoulder and began to trudge in search of shelter, sinking slightly in the sodden earth.

Katara slowly opened her eyes, bright splotches of colour blurring her vision. Pain. That's all she could think of. She didn't notice that she was in a cave, by a warm fire, nor did she notice that she was covered in a green and gold jacket – a makeshift blanket. What she did notice was pain. Blinding pain at the base of her skull. Slowly she sat up, starting to take in her surroundings. It was then that she noticed that she was in a cave, by a warm fire, and that she was covered in a green and gold jacket – what she presumed was a makeshift blanket. Green and gold… earth kingdom? Looking past the fire she saw someone looking back at her. Not earth kingdom at all. "You! What do you want? Where are we?" Katara cried, pointing accusingly at Zuko. He didn't reply immediately.

"Eat." She caught the leg of Opossum-chicken deftly, eyeing it off. Was it safe to eat? Had he drugged it? Rolling his eyes, Zuko came over and bit a chunk out of it, chewed it up and swallowed it. "No poison. Eat." Grudgingly, Katara nibbled at the leg. They both avoided eye contact, feeling incredibly awkward. Should they break the silence? They looked at each other for a second… Nah.

Yes, that would be chapter three people. I've altered it slightly from the original I had written, so if it's a bit disjointed or clunky or repetitive, just give me a holler and I'll change it. Reviews would be divine. :-p


	4. Chapter 4: Hysteria and Delirium

Chapter 4:

Aang was in panic mode, his hysteria surpassed only by that of Sokka, who was now peering under small rocks in the hope of finding his sister. Toph rolled her eyes, bending the earth to make them both fall flat on their faces. "Ow! What'd you do that for?" Sokka cried indignantly. "You were being an idiot." She replied, a little annoyed with the apparent incompetency and pure idiocy of her companions. "If she were anywhere around here I would feel her. Have you checked the creek?" Sokka bounded off, reminding Aang of an overgrown rabbit. "Meanwhile, Aang, take Appa and take a look around from the air."

"What will you do?"

"I'm gonna find me a Sugar Queen." She wiggled her toes. Now she knew what it was like for Katara, ordering these two about. While it was fun, she was sure the novelty would soon wear off.

Aang took to the sky, his grey eyes searching for any sign of Katara. This was his fault. Why did he have to tell her he loved her? He was asleep at the time, so couldn't truly be blamed… could he? Why did he have to confront her about only loving him as a brother? He had just been hurt, therefore prone to irrational behaviour. But why did Toph react the way she did? Aang waited for his subconscious to provide him with some insight, to no avail. He had nothing. Not a clue. Shaking his head, he realised he had missed several kilometres in his daze.

Sokka was panicking. Toph couldn't find his sister. That meant she could be too far away or in the creek. Looking towards the creek he saw his sisters footprints, leading to and from the creek. Toph's were there too – although smudged by the rain from last night. Looking around a large rock he found something startling. A set of footprints coming from the opposite direction to behind the rock, then returning from where they came. Whatever Katara had been doing that night, she had not been alone.

Katara woke to find the cave empty. Struggling to her feet she ignored the dull throbbing in the base of her skull. She could heal herself when she found water. Trudging out of the cave she found a small and somewhat ridiculously convenient berry bush only a stones throw from the cave mouth. She picked until she couldn't fill her skirt with anymore without being immodest. Walking back to the cave she poured them onto the coat she had been using as a blanket. That would do them for now… Zuko, struggling in with a massive fish in his arms, interrupted her thoughts. What struck her though, was not the sheer enormity of the fish, but the purple oozing bite on Zuko's ankle. "What happened to you?"

"I caught breakfast. You could show a little more gratitude."

"No, not that, your ankle! What bit you?"

Zuko looked down at his leg as if noticing for the first time that something was wrong. "Oh… that. Just a snake-eel. Nothing serious."

"Nothing serious? Your leg is purple and the size of a balloon!" This was actually an understatement. Zuko's leg was visibly swelling, the venom spreading through his leg as evident by the shade of purple that was now tracking up his leg, as though someone had decided to get creative with purple paint. Biting her lip Katara reached toward it. "Look, you sit down. I'm going to get some water and herbs and do something about that."

"I told you, I'm fin - "

"SIT!" Zuko sat, mostly out of shock than the will to obey. Who knew she had a temper? "I'll be back shortly. Eat some berries. You'll probably be needing all the strength you can get." With that she rushed into the wilderness in search of the herbs she needed.

_How long has she been gone? It seems like forever…_Zuko's thoughts trailed off as he fell into a fitful sleep. It was now night – not that that mattered much to Zuko. He could barely see anything, nor make sense of what he saw. There were colours – what pretty colours! Purples and greens – not that he'd ever really liked green… but the blue! What pretty blue. Blue pretty what…. Yes, Zuko was delirious in case this was not obvious. He had been singing to himself all evening. He waved to passing mushrooms, danced with twigs and cried when his coat told him it's life story.

Funny to watch, maybe. Little did he know he was close to death.

Ooooh, bit of a cliffy… and yes, it is… coz I could easily kill him off and then pair Katara with Jet or Aang or Zhao (yeah, ikky I know. As if I'd really do that.) or even Azula (even more wrong). Review please!


	5. Chapter 5: Unshed Tears

Chapter 5: Unshed Tears

"I found something!" Sokka ran over to Aang. "What is it?" Aang turned to face Sokka, a cheesy grin plastered over his face. Momo was curled on his head like a hat, and a flying mouse somehow attached to his upper lip, like a moustache. Toph laughed. Sokka roared in frustration. "We're supposed to be finding Katara, not using animals as cosmetics!" Momo jumped to Aang's shoulder and the mouse flew off in fright. "I'm sorry Sokka, I just couldn't resist!" he said scratching the back of his head and smiling sheepishly. Sokka slapped his forehead in frustration. "Hey! There she is!" Sokka looked expectantly at Toph, who just glared at him with sightless eyes. "That's what it will sound like when you quit fooling around and look for her."

"Must you do that every time we're searching for something?"

"Yep."

"Why?!"

"Just for kicks."

"Just for kicks?!"

"Yes Sokka, my whole life revolves around constant malicious attempts in inconveniencing you. Funny world, isn't it?"

VVVV

Aang had never really had a conversation with Toph. Not really. Not if you discounted bending lessons, finding missing persons and arguing over menial topics. "Hey Toph!" It was never to late to start – was it?

"What do you want?" Ah. Maybe it was. Not the best start.

"Er… Just wanted to talk." Toph raised an eyebrow.

"Talk?" Twinkle Toes was getting stranger by the day.

"Yeah."

"What about?"

"I dunno…um…." His attempts were met by a blank expression. He tried again.

"So… do you like… stuff?" Aang mentally kicked himself for the stupidity of his question. This was harder than he thought.

"…Sure… You?"

"Oh, yeah, totally. Stuff is… great."

Silence passed between them.

"So why did you decide to come and talk to me?"

Aang was stung by this question. He started to feel as though maybe he had neglected Toph in his efforts to catch Katara's eye. He hadn't ever stopped to talk to or think about Toph, unless it was to request a bending lesson.

"I don't know… I just thought…"

"That Sugar Queen isn't here, so you're looking for a substitute?"

"No, I just - "

"Because I'm nobody's substitute. I'm my own person."

"No, I didn't mean that - "

"I don't need your excuses Aang. I can get by on my own." Standing up, Toph left a confused and dejected Aang to drown in his thoughts.

VVVV

Toph sat on a large rock. What was up with Aang? He was acting weird. There was something wrong. But what? Was it her or him? _Definitely him._ _I didn't do anything. Nothing wrong with me. He's the one to blame on this. _She crushed a large rock in her hand. _Him and his stupid Sugar Queen. _Guilt overshadowed her heart. She was angry at Aang, but that gave her no excuse to beat up on Katara. But she didn't care. _Maybe it's because she can see. Does he think I'm some sort of weakling, pathetic _girl_? Because I could whip his butt at earth bending. I can look after myself._ She crushed another large rock. It was a habit she had developed over staying with the gang. They frustrated her to no end, and the only way she could calm herself down was to crush rocks like she wanted to crush them.

Flicking her bangs out of her eyes, she flicked pebbles at a nearby bush. _I'm no replacement. He never wanted to talk to me before Katara left. No interest whatsoever. All lonely now, aren't you Aang? How does it feel? Huh? I COULD TELL YOU!! _She threw another rock, bending it so hard it burrowed into a tree trunk and stuck. _I joined you to help you. I get nothing back. I leave my home! My parents! Everything I knew for you! And you don't care! You trail after Katara like you're some kind of lovesick fool!_ It didn't matter that Toph hated her home and how her parents treated her. She was now on such a tirade that nobody was safe, and everyone was a scapegoat.

Tears started welling in her eyes, but she fought them back. She would not cry. She would not allow him that kind of victory. She couldn't. She wouldn't. She couldn't contain them. All the tears she'd bottled up over her time with the gang started to flow in an uncontrollable stream. She wept, she wailed, she bashed her hands against the rock in agony. Her soul had been tormented with unshed tears and was now releasing them with a vengeance.

VVVV

Aang sat in a tree, watching as Toph cried. Violent sobs racked her body. He had never seen her like this. Was this his fault? He felt a tug in his heart. He had caused this. It was him that had neglected her. Leaping from the tree he embraced the sobbing girl. Surprisingly, she didn't push him away. She nestled her face in his chest and kept crying. Aang held her close and stroked her hair. Somehow, this felt natural. Right. Like this was what he was born to do, and she to fit perfectly against his form. He looked down at her and realised for the first time how pretty she was. She wasn't just a short violent girl with an attitude. She was a girl, with feelings and needs. He placed his hand on her cheek and wiped a tear away. "Shhhhh, It's ok Toph. I'm here. It's all going to be ok."

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What do you think? Like it or hate it? Reviews please! Next chapter probably up in a few hours or less! Wooties!


	6. Chapter 6: Death

Chapter 6: Death

Katara ran. She had to get back to Zuko. It didn't take a genius to work out that his life was endangered. She ran into the cave and screamed. Zuko was sprawled on the floor. He was a deathly shade of blue, his veins highlighted by the purple toxins of the snake-eel's venom. Rushing over she collapsed onto her knees beside him. She ripped open Zuko's shirt, summoning water from the urn she always carried around her waist, bending it around her hands like a glove. Closing her eyes she pressed her hands into his chest. _Please work, please work!_ Looking at Zuko, she saw his eyes glazing over, death overshadowing his soul. Her healing wasn't working. Tears streamed down her face, she let the water fall to the floor of the cave. What could she do?

She stroked his hair, trying to comfort him in his final moments. "It's ok. It'll be all over soon," she somehow managed to choke over her tears. She couldn't save him. Katara felt useless. Wrapping the water around her hands once more she tried again, willing with all her being that it might work. _Come on, come on! Why don't you work?_ It was no use. His condition was too advanced for her level of healing abilities.

Looking at her former adversary, Katara was filled with regret. There lay a soul whom she knew little about. So much knowledge and experience, lost. His youth, his power, his purpose – wasted. He was no longer her enemy. He was the embodiment of her weakness – the heart of her sorrow. Somehow, all her emotions were now weaved into his survival – or death.

Closing her eyes she wished that death would just take him and end his torment, and hers. Not quite knowing what she was doing, she began to wave her hands over his body in the same rhythmic motion she used for water bending. _Death take you and keep you save in its arms_. _No more pain, no more suffering._ Tears seeped from her eyes, falling onto Zuko's chest. She didn't want him to die. She couldn't let him die.

Opening her eyes she stared into his. _Fight it Zuko! Fight it! Help me help you!_ How could her bending have failed her now? At this moment, when she desperately needed it, when someone's life depended on it? Looking down, she saw the purple toxins in his veins moving with the same rhythmic motion as her hands. There was still hope. Concentrating what little energy she had left, she began to bend the toxins from his body. Sweat beads slipped down her forehead, stinging her eyes, but she didn't stop. She couldn't. Not now that she knew she could save him. Slowly, the purple began to recede from his veins as she bent it up through his mouth. Finally, after hours of strenuous work she had removed all traces of the venom from his body. She collapsed onto the floor out of sheer exhaustion.

Zuko's fight was far from over.

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I really like this one! Sorry for the shortness. Two chapters in one day tends to do that to a person. Teehee! Should I let him live and love, or kill him off? Hmmm… such power. Review please!


	7. Chapter 7: Moments

Chapter 7:

"KATARAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Sokka was close to giving up for the day. Katara was nowhere to be found, and had now been missing for about a week. A week! How long could his baby sister fend for herself? He turned and started trudging back in the direction of camp. Even he knew that there were limits to what you could do in a day. Arriving back he collapsed on Appa, looking at the stars. _I'm sorry Dad. I said I'd protect her – but I've failed. I won't let it happen again. I will find her – I promise._

Little did he know that the gang were searching in the opposite direction to Katara's location.

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Katara was oblivious to Sokka's cries. She was busy fixing a poultice for Zuko's wound. He was gaining strength quickly, now able to walk on his affected leg. At present moment he was sitting against the wall of the cave, eyes closed from the stinging in the snake-eel bite. The venom may have left his body, but there was an infection now to deal with. She deftly wrapped his wound with a scrap of fabric from her robe, then sat back to admire her handiwork.

"Thankyou." It was said so softly that Katara barely heard it.

"Don't mention it."

"No, really. Thankyou."

She stared into his eyes for a second.

"Why?"

Zuko looked confused.

"You could have left me to die. I would have left you."

"But you didn't. When I hit my head you brought me here."

Startled slightly, Zuko nodded.

"I guess… still. Thankyou."

Katara began to open her mouth to say something, but Zuko lifted his hand and silenced her.

"I won't say it again."

She stared at him, not quite sure what to say. This was a totally different Zuko to the one she had figured out in her head. This one was… human. Now looking at him properly, up close, without threat of third-degree burns, she saw life behind those golden eyes. Reaching out, she traced a finger around his scar. _Sad how cruel life can be_. _I bet you would have been gorgeous without a scar. Maybe not so angry… _Zuko winced and the moment was gone. She quickly pulled back her hand and stood, muttering something about needing more firewood. With that she was gone.

Zuko sat, bewildered. Although not quite sure what had just taken place, he discovered that he didn't mind it, whatever it was. Slumping down the wall slightly, he noticed that there was a mountain of firewood directly opposite him. _Why the hell was she getting more firewood?_ Shaking his head he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. _She is one of the most bazaar, crazy girls I have ever met._

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	8. Chapter 8:Recollections and Reuniting

**Chapter 8:**

First of all, thank you so much to all the people who have reviewed! There aren't many of you… but I love you all the same! So, Thanks to Avatarrocks123, pinkpanther95, Phantom101, princess25, God'schild777, Taang-more-than-orangedrink and powderedsugar!

Second and last of all, I'm having a bit of writer's block. Not sure this story is going where I want it to… any ideas would be well welcome!

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Toph stumbled for the umpteenth time that night. She was tired out of her mind, and could barely stand up. If Prince Sparky chose now to attack her, she would be powerless to defend herself – she could barely work up enough energy to blink let alone send giant rocks at the banished prince's head.

_This is all Sugar Queen's fault. If she hadn't run off I wouldn't be here now. Stupid, uppity, idiotic, selfish, imbecilic, self-centred… _Making a mental note to beat the hell out of Katara when she found her and cursing under her breath, Toph continued to drag two unconscious bodies behind her.

CUE FLASHBACK 

"KATARA! KATARA! KATAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Sokka and Aang's voices filled the air, until Katara's name was resonating through the trees. Toph knew this, because she could feel the vibrations in her feet strengthen in time with their yells. The yelling wasn't what was bothering her though. Sokka was climbing up a tree, screaming at some squirrel-bats as though it were their fault that Katara was missing. Aang, too, was starting to get hysterical, bending water out of the river as though searching through an overstuffed suitcase in search of her. It would have been incredibly funny, if the situation wasn't so serious. Things were starting to get out of hand though…

"_Will you both please just SHUT UP?!"_

_Aang turned and stared, bewildered at Toph, as though just remembering that she was present. In his slight shock, he dropped the water he had been bending and soaked himself. _

_Sokka, too, was startled by Toph's sudden input. He had done a forward flip out of the tree, followed by a perfect pike before landing, once more, in a prickle bush. _

_Aang darted over to him, grabbed his ponytail and began to yank, trying to pull him free. Sokka screeched in pain, both from the prickles and the hair yanking, and tried to stand, but failed, pulling Aang into the bush with him. Both scrambling to free themselves, they managed to give each other a black eyes and bleeding noses. Finally free of the bush, Sokka stalked over to Toph._

"_WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR? DON'T YOU WANT TO FIND MY SISTER? AND WHY YELL WHEN I'M ABOVE A PRICKLE BUSH? ARE YOU INSANE?"_

Before Toph could answer, Aang had tackled Sokka to the ground and began punching him in every available space. "DON'T EVER TALK TO TOPH LIKE THAT! ESPECIALLY AROUND ME!" Flattered as Toph was, she couldn't take it anymore. Stomping her foot on the ground, two rocks floated into the air before dropping with a resounding 'PLUNK' on both boys' heads, knocking them out cold. While Toph had her peace, suddenly she realised, she also had a long way to walk, and a very heavy load to carry.

**End Flashback**

The memory of it would have made Toph laugh… only she was tired beyond normal frivolity functions. Collapsing on the ground she looked over at Aang_. He really is quite cute when he's unconscious. Should put him that way more often…_As she gazed at his sleeping form, she noticed a funny shaped whistle hanging around his neck. Smashing her hand to her head at her own stupidity, she picked up the whistle and blew. Within moments Appa had joined them and had thrown the two unconscious boys unceremoniously onto his back. How could she have forgotten the bison whistle? Shaking her head, she clambered onto the large beast's back and collapsed in exhaustion once more, this time into the comfort of Appa's saddle instead of the hard earth. While she loved her element, it was no good for sleeping.

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Meanwhile, now not so far away, Katara was saying goodbye to Zuko. He had decided that evening that he needed to find his Uncle, who was most likely worried about him. She fixed the bandage around his leg one last time before watching him walk off into the distance, feeling more alone than she had done since her mother died. Katara set off into the woods, too preoccupied with her thoughts of the past few days to notice much else.

She still couldn't quite believe that Zuko had saved her when he found her unconscious. After all, what was the life of a water peasant to a Firenation Prince? Maybe if he had kept her and used her as bait to get Aang it would have made more sense… but he just walked away from her only a matter of moments ago. _Maybe he had been planning on taking me as a prisoner before I saved him. But then, why leave me unattended when he went to get food? _Katara shook her head. He was a hard one to figure out, especially when she hadn't had any proper experience in living with him around. If it were Sokka, Aang or Toph, she would have no problem deciphering the reasons behind their actions… but a troubled Zuko was a completely different realm of understanding to master. Shaking her head again, Katara decided that there was no use in wasting mind-space thinking about it now. It wouldn't do her any good. She had to concentrate on getting back to the gaang.

It wasn't long, though, before she discovered that she hadn't the foggiest where she was. She'd been unconscious when Zuko brought her here. What on earth was she going to do now? It had been too long since they arrived to trace footprints. Yelling in exasperation, she realised what she was going to have to do. Turning on her heel she trudged back along the path she had just stamped out.

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After leaving Katara behind, Zuko set off to find his Uncle. Not quite sure where he would be, he decided to follow the stream, seeing as they had been camping next to it before he left. As he walked, he watched the waters of the stream twist and turn, leaves stuck in the whirling eddies of the current. As much as he hated to admit it, he didn't hate water. He found earth to be a crude element, and didn't believe that air was at equal match with fire in any stretch of the imagination. Water though, water was a different matter entirely. It could bend and twist the same way as fire did, and freeze the very core of your being. The thought of it sent a shiver down Zuko's spine. A freezing like that could quench his fire bending ability. That's what he admired about the waterbender – Katara. Fearless, stubborn and dangerous – yet not psychotic. They only come around once or so in a lifetime.

Of course, it didn't hurt that she wasn't ugly either. Not ugly at all. _Pretty…far too pretty for someone like me._ Jun's words echoed through his head, but he didn't know why they were bothering him now. They hadn't bothered him before. _Pft, whatever. Not like I'll ever see her like that again. Next time she'll be back with the Avatar. She'll be the enemy again and we can resume our previous acquaintance. _

The sound of running footsteps shook him from his reverie. Turning, he saw the very same waterbender jogging towards him, plait swinging wildly behind her. Zuko stopped and waited for her to catch up to him.

"What are you doing here?" The question sounded hard in his ears, a lot harder than he had intended. Old habits die hard.

"Didn't know where the gaang would be. I was unconscious when you took me to the cave, so wasn't exactly aware of my surroundings, you know? Had a little trouble getting back."

"Afraid to be alone?" He smirked at her, loving the defiance flaring in her crystal blue eyes.

" 'Course not," She said with a flick of her hair, straightening out her robe. "I just didn't see the point in travelling by myself when I knew there was a perfect travelling partner here." Zuko felt a slight warmth in his cheeks and prayed to Agni that she hadn't noticed. Why her words brought a blush to his face he didn't know, and didn't much like the effect she was having on him. Katara, obviously perturbed slightly by his silence, carried on.

"You don't mind, do you?"

Zuko stopped and watched her walk a few steps ahead of him, hips swaying as she walked. He stood mesmerised as she turned to face him, perfectly shaped eyebrows raised slightly in expectance. He mentally shook himself. _Stop it. This is fraternising with the enemy. Escort her and that is it. It would be dishonourable to do anything less…_

"No. You can come if you want."

_I don't mind at all…_

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There you go darlin's! I tried to make it a bit longer for you. If you spot any spelling errors or 'clunky' sections, please let me know and I'll fix them right away. Can't have you feeling dissatisfied with your reading experience. (giggles) Ciao xx


	9. Chapter 9: Arguments

**Chapter 9:**

Wow. I love all you readers out there. I really do. I went to look at my email, and discovered I had 17 new emails, 10 of which were reviews! Not to mention my story hit stats jumped from 500 to 1500 in 3 days. So, I just wanted to say, THANK YOU! It's people like you who make a girl want to continue writing a story. You are all brilliant. Anyway, without further ado, the next chapter. xx

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Btw, I do a line of Vs because my account doesn't register plain lines. It's being difficult.

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"Look woman, it's not my fault I only have one sleeping roll on me!" Zuko glared at the waterbender, arms crossed in defiance.

"What do you expect me to do then? I'm the girl here! Wouldn't it be _dishonourable_ for you to let me sleep on the ground?" She smirked at him, quite proud of that argument. Zuko hesitated slightly. He knew she was right. There was no level of honour in that… but he'd be darned if he was going to sleep on the ground again.

"Ha, come off it. If you don't want to sleep on the ground, I suggest you find yourself a nice warm platypus bear to cuddle up to. You're not getting my sleeping roll."

"Oh that's nice. Real maturity showing through there."

"Yeah, just like you right now, throwing a tantrum. You must have been a nightmare as a child. No, stick that, you _are_ a nightmare."

"I'm a nightmare? _I'm_ a nightmare?"

"That's I said, yeah. Going deaf too?"

"No! I most certainly am not!"

"Wait, you're not which? Deaf or a nightmare?"

"Dea – wait, stop it! Just give me the sleeping roll and all this will be done with."

"That's hardly an incentive. You're losing this anyway."

She glared at him. How was it that he could be so nice and chivalrous one day, then a completely stubborn moron the next?

"Look you, I'll have you know that I never lose."

"Is that so?"

"It is so." She said, jabbing her finger into Zuko's chest to punctuate each syllable. Raising an eyebrow he stared at her. How could she claim to never lose when she was so clearly losing this very argument?

"Riiiiight. I'm going to hop into my sleeping roll now. You have fun." As he turned he felt a sharp sting in his shoulder. Turning, he saw Katara wielding a waterwhip and looking to kill.

"Look, how about we share it then?"

"What kind of girl do you think I am?!" A slightly sheepish look flashed across Zuko's face before he replaced it again with a smirk.

"I meant, you have it one night, I have it the next. You know? _Sharing?_"

Rolling her eyes, the waterbender walked up to him once more and pressed her face right up close to his, glaring into his eyes.

"Fine. But I go first."

"No way!"

"Ye-ah."

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

And so the argument continued. There was much ranting and raving and gnashing of teeth, mostly Katara trying to bite Zuko as they struggled to be the one in possession of the much-desired sleeping roll.

In the midst of the fighting, Katara thought of something, and grinned. They continued fighting until she had Zuko backed up against a tree. He was struggling against her, yanking at the sleeping roll, though not keen on actually hurting her (there's no honour in violence against women after all). She placed a hand on the tree next to his head and ran the other through his hair, whispering softly in his ear, "You know you want to give me that Zuko. You know you do…"

More shocked than anything, he dropped it. And Katara grabbed it and ran.

"Wait, that wasn't fair! That was not decent! Underhanded!"

Grinning over her shoulder at him, she called,

"That I may be, but who's the one who's sleeping on the ground tonight, hm?"

Zuko roared in frustration, setting a few trees alight to help calm his nerves. Travelling with her was growing to be a nuisance.

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Apologies for the short chapter. Busy schedule. I'll try and update again REALLY soon! R&R please! xx


	10. Chapter 10: Fallen behind

Sorry for slight delay. I had a ton of school work... still do actually, but am perfecting the art of procrastinating. Please let me know if any sections are a bit dodgy, or if spelling is off! I do my best to edit it, but some things go unseen as I am blinded by Author's pride (wink teehee) But here it is!

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**Chapter 10: Those that fall behind are left behind**

It was dark and raining. Perfect weather for losing your sister, or so Sokka would have you believe. Walking along behind Toph, Aang and Appa, he hung his head; shoulder's slumped as though the weight of the world was upon them. He pulled out his boomerang and looked at it, stroking it mindlessly. It had helped him out so many times… but this time it could not. He had no foe to throw it at… Katara was gone and he couldn't do anything about it. Looking up he saw the back of the bald monk's head… and lobbed his boomerang at it. _Yep, that made me feel good,_ he thought to himself as Aang fell flat on his face. Laughing hysterically, Sokka didn't notice his boomerang coming back. He joined Aang in a face-plant on the ground as he too was whacked on the back of the head.

"INSTANT KARMA!!!" Toph yelled pointing at Sokka as he struggled to stand.

"Shut up you." Rubbing his arm he scrambled to his feet and continued walking without a glance at the others. "We have to find Katara." Toph shook her head. She had seen this coming. The obsessive, brooding teenager was oh so predictable. The question that kept playing through her mind was, how on earth would the find Katara? She could be anywhere. For all they knew, they could be walking in the opposite direction. She voiced this to Sokka, and was not surprised by his response.

"INSTINCT!!" Aang too shook his head, for two reasons: a) his head was still throbbing and b) he knew how unreliable Sokka's instincts could prove to be. "Maybe we should just go back to our original campsite and just wait there for her to find us?" he ventured, but regretted it as Sokka sent him a withering stare. Without warning, Toph brought her foot down hard on the ground, forming an earth tent. Retreating into it, she brought her hands together, forming two panels that slid together roughly – much like a sliding door. "I don't know about you, but I'm tired, and not walking any further." Her voice was muffled, but no less welcome to Aang's ears. He too flopped down onto Appa's tail with a groan of relief. After a while, he felt the presence of another seated beside him. Propping himself up on his elbows, he looked over to see Sokka, his face expressionless. "What's u - "

"What are we going to do Aang?" Sokka asked, turning to face Aang. Aang had never seen Sokka look so serious.

"Don't worry. We'll find Katara. She's a powerful bender. She'll - "

"No." Aang stared at Sokka, dumbfounded.

"What?"

"I said no." Hearing it twice made it no more clear to the Airbender what exactly it was that Sokka was 'no-ing' about.

"What are you saying no to?" Sokka hesitated, looking up at the dark clouds above them.

"I said no, we're not going to find Katara." Aang was in shock. What was he saying? This was Katara's over protective brother… suggesting to leave her behind?

"Are you crazy? Leave her alone out there? Abandon her?" Sokka winced.

"It's not that… I know my sister. I know she would have wanted me – us – to keep going. You still need to learn firebending, as well as all the other things we have to work out and plan before you can take on the Fire Lord. I know Katara would have wanted this." Aang looked at him, wide eyed and confused.

"You talk like she's dead or something." From how the older teenager cringed, he could tell it was a bad choice of words. Desperately, he tried to rephrase.

"Not dead…but…not coming back." Sokka looked back at him, his blue eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Maybe she's not. But my instincts tell me that she's ok… wherever she is, and that we should go on."

"Not meaning to be disparaging to your instincts, but they have been unreli - "

"Don't doubt me. We need to believe – _I_ need to believe that I'm right on this. I'm telling you, Katara is fine. We need to get ready to take on the Fire Lord. I'm going to bed. Goodnight Aang." With that, Sokka upped and left before Aang could say another word.

From her rock hut, Toph had heard the whole conversation. She could feel from his vibrations that Sokka was as unsure of leaving Katara as Aang was. She could see that the decision was tearing him up inside, but agreed that it was necessary. Secretly, in the seclusion of her stone refuge, she both admired him and felt sorry for him. She could feel how hard it was for him, leaving his baby sister, the one he had promised to protect, behind. She was roused from her broodings by light footsteps coming towards her, and an even lighter knock on the stone door. "Toph?" Aang's voice was so small and pathetic; she just had to take pity on him. Opening the door, she let him in before closing it again. "What's up Twinkletoes?" She asked him as kindly as she could manage. This was usually up Katara's alley, comforting people and what not. It had never before fallen to her to act motherly or kindly to another in their time of need, and she had no idea how to go about it. Making a mental note to ask Katara how to do this kind of thing when she next saw her, Toph did something she often saw Katara do. She pulled Aang into a hug. A somewhat awkward hug – but she was trying. "We're leaving Katara Toph. We're leaving her. I know it's for the best but - " Toph winced. She knew what was coming. "You love her. Of course it's going to hurt." Every word she spoke tore at her heart. Closing her sightless eyes, she wished he would stop hurting. She hated to see him sad – not to mention it was really awkward. Why did Katara have to leave her to this? This was her job! _Stupid Katara…_Mentally she kicked herself. She was part of the reason Katara was gone after all.

"It's not that." Toph's ears perked up.

"What's that Twinkletoes?"

"I don't love her. I just feel… don't you feel… bad? You know, abandoning her like that? After all she's done for us… we're just going to… leave her?" She did feel bad. She felt awful. And she told him so.

"But Aang, we have to keep going. It's going to be tough. We're going to have to be like the rock to get through. You're the Avatar, aren't you?" She asked, pushing him out of the hug. She knew this was probably hurting him, but it was the only thing she could think of doing to get him out of his mood. "Aren't you the Avatar? You're supposed to save the world, bring balance. How can you bring balance when you're off centred yourself?" she demanded, emphasising her point with a small shove that sent the Airbender sprawling. She was now too far into her pep talk to notice that his vibrations were ones of great distress, tears now coursing down his young face. "You need to hold it together! If not for yourself, then do it for Katara! Do if for the world? Do it for Momo, Sokka and Appa! Do it for me! But you need to PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER! You couldn't master fire bending at this. You'd be lucky to earth bend a pebble at this rate! Now get up Aang! Get up and be what you need to be!" Aang stood shakily, looking away from the fierce young girl. Now finished her speech, Toph had cooled down enough to notice the change in his vibrations. She walked over to him and pulled him into a hug again – albeit a brief one. "It's going to be ok Aang. You've got us behind you all the way. You've got a warrior, a flying bison, a flying lemur and the world's greatest earthbender. We'll get you through." Aang nodded slightly. Toph was right. He had enough to get him through. He had to pull himself together. "Thanks Toph. Goodnight." With a wave of his hand he left the tent. Toph called after him. "OI! Twinkletoes!" Turning around, Aang looked at her quizzically. "Yeah?" Toph grinned.

"We'll find her afterwards. She'll be back and bossing us around before you know it." Aang grinned back. Flopping onto Appa's tail once more, he felt, for the first time since Katara had left, like everything was going to be ok, with or without Katara. Aang blushed. _And who knew Toph could hug? _

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There you go. A wee bit of Taang happening. May be a little out of Character – I do my bestest to keep them like they are on the show, promise! But my imagination can get the better of me. Any ideas of what you want to happen? I haven't fully decided, and am open to all suggestions or challenges. Slight writers block. Have a good one! And please Review. It does my little heart good – and inspires longer chappies xx


	11. Chapter 11: A Disagreemnet

Sorry again for an overly long delay. Thank you all for your reviews! You are lovely people. Truly smashing. xx

….o0o….

**Chapter 11:**

It had been three weeks since she'd last seen the gang. Three long, tension filled weeks. Three weeks of fighting to coexist with Zuko. It hadn't been easy. Not at all. She deserved a medal for what she had to put up with. He was helpful, she'd give him that. Katara hadn't thought that he would have helped anyone with chores, let alone walk up and offer. Even Sokka, Aang and Toph, her makeshift family, didn't offer to help her with anything. Yet there he was, the enemy, offering one brawny hand out to take a shirt to wash.

That of course, was nothing on the angst he caused her. As they travelled – pointless meandering in her opinion – he didn't speak. Countless times she tried to start up a conversation. Innumerable "So…..", "How's things?", "Nice weather" and other such conversation starters had been sent out onto the ocean of conversation, only to be sunk moments later by one of Zuko's noncommittal mutterings. It didn't actually sound like all that much when she voiced it in her mind like that… but she was not to be deterred. He was a nuisance.

When they would finally finish walking for the day and make camp, he would hurriedly erect a smallish lean-to before rushing away to meditate. This was a concept quite foreign to Katara. Aang had rarely sat still and meditated, saving such occasions only for when he needed to traverse into the avatar state – and seeing as Zuko had no need or ability to do so, she didn't see the point. When she expressed these feelings, she was met with low growls and a wall of seething flames. Accepting defeat temporarily, she would retreat to make dinner. A dinner that Zuko would down without comment. No thank you, no compliments, no howdy do da. No complaints either, which made it bearable, but some acknowledgement would have been nice.

Three long weeks. She kept reminding herself that it wasn't really all that long, that she had lasted through greater trials than this. Her mental energy, however, was wasted trying to argue this point. She couldn't take it anymore. She stood and stalked away from the older teenager without a word.

He didn't question her leaving – something she would have prized had she been with the gaang, but was coming to loathe as she stayed with Zuko. She couldn't stand the total indifference he treated her with. She needed attention. She craved it. Never had she gone so long with someone who didn't seem to care in the slightest what she did. Sokka had always been there, a meagre protection but a constant, strong presence in her life. Aang had been around for long enough for her to have become dependent on his constant yammering (not that yammering was quite the right word for it). Even Toph had been better company; always there, always solid and dependable. Without them, she was lost.

Apparently, that was meant in both metaphorical and literal terms. Katara realised she had strayed far from their campsite in the midst of her silent tantrum. Growling in frustration she sat down – only to stand straight back up again and begin to pace. With the gaang, she knew that if she got lost, they would come and find her (with the exclusion of course, of this particular incident that had landed her with Zuko in the first place). With Zuko she was not so sure. She often got the feeling that he found her to be more of a hinderane than anything, and was honestly doubtful that he would care if she was no longer present. Something about that concept cut her deep, bringing unbidden tears to her eyes. 'This is pointless!' She thought furiously. 'We are going nowhere! I'm travelling with the enemy for spirits sake! Of course he's not going to care if I'm lost – one more thing he has over on Aang. That's all I am to him. A pawn in his plan to capture Aang.' Without realising it, she had stalked back to the campsite and landed herself directly in front of a still meditating Zuko, hands on hips and a scowl plastered viciously on her face.

Zuko looked up, obviously vexed at having been disturbed.

"Yes?"

"Zuko," Katara began in a silky yet deadly voice. "What exactly is your plan?"

"Plan?"

"Yes Zuko, Your plan. Where exactly are we going?"

Zuko hesitated. "To find Uncle."

"And do you know where he is?"

Zuko hesitated again. There was a slightly scary twinkle in her eyes that was much like that of Azula at a young age. This was certainly not a good sign.

"…No."

Judging by the vein throbbing slightly at her temple, the clenched fists and wide glaring eyes fixed over bared teeth, Zuko had been correct in assuming that she was in a dangerous mood.

"What do you mean NO?"

Not sure how to answer, Zuko decided not to mince words.

"Exactly that. No."

"WHAT?!"

Just reading between the lines, Zuko realised too late that this was probably not the best way to answer her question.

"SO YOU HAVE BEEN LEADING US ALL ABOUT THE COUNTRY SIDE IN SEARCH OF SOMEONE AND YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY **NO** IDEA WHERE HE IS???"

"Yes."

"YOU ARE SO INFURIATING! YOU MARCH OUR FEET OFF, REFUSE TO STOP AND REST AND YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHERE WE'RE HEADED?"

"Yes."

"ARGH! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!"

"Calm down Katara."

"CALM DOWN? CALM DOWN? **I'M COMPLETELY CALM!!!**"

"Riiiiiiiiight."

In all honesty, Zuko was actually rather shaken by the strength of Katara's fury – but was too proud to let it show. While it was probably a dangerous thing to do, he kept his face emotionless and his voice indifferent. This was most definitely a mistake.

"You had better not have just used that tone with me Zuko."

Again he was shaken – one moment she was yelling loud enough to cause the wall of Ba Sing Se to crumble, next speaking in such a low voice he had to strain to hear her.

"Tone?"

"Yes. Let me tell you something _Zuko._"

He could tell this was not going to end well. Especially when she bent water out of the skin at her hip. That was also not a good sign.

"I HATE people like you," She spat, slapping him with a water whip to punctuate each word. "who think they are better than everyone else. I **hate** being ignored by someone whose life I saved only a matter of days ago! I DEMAND SOME RESPECT! You are not the centre of the universe! Your meditating is not something that is vital **every time we stop and sit down! **You need to learn to **pull your weight! **ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?"

Zuko cowered.

"GOOD! KEEP LISTENING! If we are to get through this, we are going to need to **make a plan for spirits sake! **We can't just go traipsing about the wilderness until we find your Uncle! WHAT IF WE RAN INTO AZULA INSTEAD?"

Zuko shuddered.

"Don't like that idea I see? THEN SWALLOW YOUR PRIDE, COME SIT OVER HERE AND TELL ME WHAT IT IS YOU PLAN ON DOING BEFORE I CAUSE YOU SOME SERIOUS PAIN!"

Shuddering, Katara calmed down suddenly. All her bottled frustration vented, she looked over at him with a slight smile. Zuko was utterly disturbed by the sudden swing of her mood, but was not going to do anything to make her start yelling again.

"So, Zuko," Katara asked pleasantly, "what is your plan?"

"I don't know – " He trailed off as Katara's eyes flashed dangerously again. "Um… any suggestions?"

Katara smiled. He was easier to break in than Sokka had been. "I suggest we go to Ba Sing Se." When Zuko raised an eyebrow at her she continued. "Well, Aang, Sokka, Toph and I were planning to head that way. I've also heard that they have some of the best tea in the Earth Kingdom – seeing as your uncle loves tea so much… would that be a good place to start out?"

Zuko nodded. This was a good idea, he'd hand her that. Not out loud of course, just subconscious acknowledgement.

"Whereto from there? What would we do once we got there?"

"We'd – " trailing off, Katara remembered who she was talking to. She had been about to tell him about the eclipse before Sozin's commit! Mentally scolding herself for forgetting herself, she searched wildly for a new scheme – but none came. " – well, I don't know what we'd do. But it's a good start, isn't it?"

Zuko nodded in agreement, wondering furtively what it was that she'd been about to say. Passing her his bedroll and curling into a ball on the ground, he made a mental note to get it out of her in the next few days. He started when he felt a jab in his side.

"Wha?" He looked over to see Katara, a stubbornly drawn look in her face.

"Come here. I've opened up the bedroll so it's twice as wide – we can both fit on it, but we won't have a blanket. I'm willing to share so long as you _keep to your side._"

Zuko threw his hands up defensively.

"I would not even imagine straying over to your side." _You are a peasant and I a prince after all. _He added as an afterthought to himself. Nonetheless, he appreciated not having to lie directly on the hard earth all night.

Katara however, was becoming frustrated again. She had just surrendered some of her comfort to help him, and what did she get? Indifference and snobbery. She knew what he had been thinking from the smug smirk on his face. The nerve of him –

"Thank you."

It was barely audible, but Katara heard and appreciated it. This was a small milestone, but Katara was convinced it would not be the last.

…o0o…

Hope you liked it!!! If you didn't, please let me know! If you did, also let me know! All reviews are loved and cherished. I hope you like it – of course, I don't really know. No one reviews you see. While my story has received 3664 hits, I only have 34 reviews for all ten chapters put together. 

Any suggestions or corrections are warmly accepted! Thank you all xx


	12. Chapter 12: Iroh's Tale

_**Chapter 12: Iroh's Tale**_

I'm sorry for my extended absence. I have recently had absolutely no motivation to write this story. All my ideas just sort of… keeled over and died really. So here is an attempt (albeit a poor one) to overcome my uncaring-ness and continue with this story! The next chapter should be better anyway. Hope you like it xx

…_**o0o…**_

It was a small village. The houses were rundown mud-brick mounds, smoke puffing gently from the chimneys. The livestock had an underfed bony look to them, and even the people looked sunken and gaunt. This was a place that had felt the full effect of the war. Iroh's heart grew heavier as he saw some children, knock-kneed, bony and grey skinned from malnutrition. It was a hard thing to watch. Iroh looked down at his own protruding belly and felt almost ashamed. As he walked down the road, his eye was drawn to a large gilded tea-house. It was lavishly decorated and very well kempt. It was clearly the economic centre of this small place.

Iroh walked through the ornate doors and requested a cup of Jasmine Tea. It arrived, with a flourish moments later. It was presented most elaborately – gold cup and saucer with intricate designs moulded around the edges. Iroh took a sip – only his training in etiquette as a general kept him from spraying it across the room. Despite its showy presentation, it had such a bitter taste it made his eyebrows curl.

"Just because it looks good, does not mean that it tastes that way." Iroh thought to himself as he left the building.

A chink of china on china caught the ex-general's well trained ears. Following the noise, he came across a run-down tea house. Again, he entered and ordered Jasmine Tea. This time it was served in a clumsy china cup – yet, Iroh found to his immense pleasure, it tasted fabulous.

"Do you like it?"

Iroh looked up to see a young girl looking up at him through a curtain of messy brown hair.

"Yes! This is some of the best tea I have ever tasted! I should send my nephew to learn tea-lore from you." Iroh grinned.

The girls face glowed.

"I saw you come from the other place."

"Really?"

"Yep. I heard their tea is awful."

Iroh smiled. "It's terrible. My tastebuds are still in shock."

"Not that it really matters what the tea tastes like anyway. Here, it's all about looking like you can afford to go to all the nicest looking places. Gran is talking about shutting our teahouse – we can't afford it anymore, she says."

At that moment, a plump old woman with steel-grey hair bustled over – a flowery apron tied around her vast girth.

"Anthi, what have I told you about talking with the customers? Honestly. You talk more than you serve – especially with that young tattooed boy earlier! Covered in arrows he was. Honestly - "

"A young boy with arrow tattoos you say?"

The woman was jerked from her monologue by Iroh's question.

"Yes, why?"

"Did you see where they went?"

"No – "

"Thank you ma'am, for the tea."

Iroh stood, pushing money into the woman's hands and departing. If the Avatar was here, chances were, Zuko wasn't far behind. Iroh wandered around the alleyways of the rundown buildings, searching for any sign of the Avatar or his nephew.

As he turned a corner, a short green clad figure approached him. Smiling in recognition, he greeted her.

"Toph! It's wonderful to see you again!"

Smiling, the sightless girl nodded.

"Why are you here?"

"I was looking for my nephew. He went missing a few weeks ago. When I heard you were here, I guessed he couldn't be too far away."

"Missing? Like last time?"

"No, not quite. He did not say goodbye, which leads me to believe that he did not intend to be gone so long.

"funny, we lost Katara a few weeks ago too." A look of realisation dawned on her face.

"You don't think Zuko - ?"

Frowning, Iroh interrupted her.

"My nephew may have made some mistakes, but he is an honourable man. He would not do anything to your Katara, even to get to the Avatar."

Toph nodded. "I'm sorry."

Her facial expression changed as she shifted her foot in the dirt.

"Is something wrong?"

"Aang and Sokka are coming."

"Ah. How are they? Has Aang mastered all four elements yet?"

Toph snorted. "They're alright, I guess. Aang's still learning water and earth bending – but hasn't even started on fire bending. It's a bit hard to find a teacher when most firebenders are out to kill us."

Iroh chuckled. "I see how that could be a problem for you." Then an idea dawned on him. "What if I were to teach the Avatar? I'm not out to kill you, I promise."

Toph gave a lopsided grin. "I'll see what I can do."

Turning on her heel, Toph bellowed, "Oi! There's someone I want you two to meet!" Turning back to Iroh, she grinned. Sokka's face would be priceless – too bad she wouldn't see it. She would have to make do with his spluttered verbal hash of a response.

"Hey Toph, what is – aargh!" Sokka yelled, pointing at Iroh. "He – what? – fire! Toph! – kill! He's here to kill Aang! He's – AAAAARGH!" Sokka bellowed once more as he was rocketed into the air by a timely earthbending moment curtesy of Toph. Said girl turned to the Avatar and introduced him. "Aang, Iroh. Iroh, Aang. Firebending teacher, student. Student, Firebending teacher. From his vibrations, she could tell he was gob smacked – and about to interrupt.

"No 'buts' Aang. Think of me as the fill in Katara – minus the sympathy. I know what's best. Deal with it, move on and run along and learn how to bend fire so we can defeat the Fire Lord. Savvy?" Aang nodded his head dumbly while Iroh tried to hold back a grin. He was going to have fun with these kids.

…_**o0o…**_

Well, there you have it. The next one will be up shortly – if not immediately after this one. Reviews are most welcome – flamers, criticism, praise – everything! xx


	13. Chapter 13: Unmasked

_**Chapter 13: Unmasked**_

Well, here is the next chapter as promised. I can't believe I've written a fic with thirteen chapters – and many more to come. This has to be one of the longest stories I have ever written. Well, hope you like the next chapter! Xx

…_**o0o…**_

Katara sat on the edge of a stream, watching Zuko. He had been trying (unsuccessfully) to catch a fish for the last two hours. She had initially offered help, but Zuko claimed that he could do it – and that it was his job. _'Look Katara, I gather the food, you make it edible. That's the deal here."_ Katara had thrown her hands up in mock defeat, and resigned herself to watching him struggle. It had so far proved highly amusing. He had clearly never gone fishing in his life.  
Standing waist deep in the stream, a shirtless Zuko stood, holding a tree branch, stabbing the water violently with it every time he thought he saw a fish. Of course, the branch was just like any other tree branch. Little twigs poking out the sides, leaves that got in his face – he hadn't even sharpened the end of the thing. To make things worse (for Zuko that is. For Katara it was downright hilarious), he had picked a branch that housed a nest of very big, very angry ants – all out to cause him some serious hurt. That had resulted in much yelling, cursing, splashing and near drowning from Zuko and uncontrollable fits of laughter from Katara.

It also (thought she would never admit it) gave her a chance to shamelessly stare at the teenager before her. "Not in _that_ way, of course," She convinced herself, "I just need to know what I'm up against." That was the excuse she used as she admired his rippling muscles along his back, his tight abs and incredible fitness.

"WHAT ARE YOU STARING AT?"

Katara shook herself out of her stupor and grinned playfully.

"I'm just watching you gathering – and might I say, what a fine job you are doing!" Zuko scowled. "Shut up. It's harder than it looks you know. I bet you couldn't catch one."

"Oh really?" She asked, her hackles rising slowly as she took a step towards him.

"Yeah, really!" He replied angrily, also taking a step forward.

"You really think so?"

"I really do!"

"really?"

"Really!"

"Really?"

"Really!"

Their faces were now just inches apart as they glared daggers at eachother – Zuko's arms crossed defiantly and Katara's hands placed firmly on her hips.

"Stand aside, let a _master_ show you how it's done." She said, pushing him in the chest and walking past, her plait flying wildly behind her.

Zuko raised an eyebrow but remained silent, deciding that watching her failure would be more satisfying than dignifying her jab with a response.

Katara waded out into the water and lifted her arm. Zuko snorted. She didn't even have a stick. He started as something wet and scaly smacked him firmly in the face. Tearing it away he held it at arms length.

"Cute Katara. Very cute. Waterbending doesn't count." He said and burnt the fish to ash using his firebending. "Try now with a stick or something – bending is cheating and you know it."

"Fine." Plucking a reed from the bank, Katara carefully sharpened the end of it using a blade of ice. She tested it with her thumb, smiling to herself in satisfaction. Gracefully, she hurled it into the water and brought it back out again. On the end of it were three fishes.

Zuko stared dumbfounded, though he recovered quickly. Seeing his expression, Katara smirked. In retaliation, Zuko incinerated the fish.

"ZUKO!"

"What?"

"YOU FRIED MY FISH AGAIN!"

"Your point?"

"WHY?"

"Because you cheated."

"WHAT! HOW DID I CHEAT?!"

Zuko shrugged. "Not sure. But I'm sure you did."

Katara bit her tongue and said nothing, a vein now pulsing dangerously at her temple. In a dangerously quiet voice, Katara said, "I'm going to do this again. This time, if, _and when_, I catch some fish, you will not burn them. If you do, I will make your day an endless vortex of misery and woe – and we don't want that now, do we?" Her eyes had once again achieved the Azula-esque glint, giving Zuko the creeps.

"Ok, ok. No fish burning here."

Turning back around, she stood still, make-shift spear poised for the kill. Zuko sat and watched her eyes darting across the water's surface, searching for her prey. Suddenly, she struck, one, two, three, four, five... Zuko lost count of the number of times she stabbed into the water. Point being, when she turned to Zuko in complete triumph, spear held aloft in front of here, there were a heck of a lot of fish on it. Unfortunately for him, a fly took this moment to fly into his nose, causing him to sneeze. No ordinary sneeze of course, a flame filled sneeze that turned Katara's fish into ash.

"Zuko!" Cried Katara in frustration, "You just char-grilled a whole ecosystem of fish! Now what are we going to do for food?"

Zuko scuffed his foot on the ground but maintained his stoic expression – he was not about to look embarrassed in front of her.

"There's a town nearby. We could get stuff there."

Katara rolled her eyes and threw her arms up in exasperation. "And we're just going to waltz in there, Avatar's waterbender and firenation prince – bold as brass, penniless and outlawed? You want us to go in there and get supplies?! 'oh, _excuse me_,'" Katara mimicked, the sarcasm in her voice so thic you could almost cut through it, "'I'm a poor struggling outlaw, would you mind if we took your wares without paying? Oh, and doin't tell the firenation soldiers we're here. Thanks!'" It was then Zuko's turn to roll his eyes.

"Look oh wise one," he said, pulling something out of his shirt with a flourish. Katara recognised it at once – the blue spirit mask. "This is the difference between you and me. The caught and the free."

"Good for you sparky, but what would you have me do?" Both seemed slightly taken aback at Katara's forwardness, though recovered quickly.

"You have one too _princess_," Zuko growled, throwing her a mask from his pack. "I have a spare. You know... in case I... lost one." Katara stared at it. It was exactly the same as Zuko's. She traced the white detailingwith her finger before slipping it carefully over her face.

"Zuko," Katara asked tentatively, "Why do you wear this mask? This one in particular?" Zuko sighed and turned away. "A mask is to protect your identity from enemies. It protects your dignity and honour, as noone can see who it is acting from behind it. This mask does that for me.It is also the face of the bluespirit – who, in my country, represents the outcast."

The mask held true to it's purpose – it hid from Katara the tear that slid down his face.

"Come on," He said gruffly before running in the direction of the nearby town.

_**...o0o...**_

Well, there you have it! That is, indeed, the next chapter. Sorry for the wait, my computer upstairs has... well... blown up. Not quite literally, but it is broken to the extent where it will not turn on nomatter how many profanities you scream at it. So, I had to wait for my laptop to arrive, be set up... blah blah blah. (Coz I got a new laptop for uni!Yay!)

Hope you like it. I'm typing up the next chapter now. x


	14. Chapter 14: Amateur Flames

_**Chapter 14: Amateur Flames**_

Hello again! Yay for my laptop that enables me to flood this story with chapters! Isn't life a hoot? Ok, well, here we go! x

_**...o0o...**_

Aang's face contorted in concentration. His left eyelid twitched, as did his eyebrow. He sneezed. Wiping his nose in an overly exaggerated fashion, he settled back into a comfortable sitting position. He wiggled his toes. Random, disjointed thoughts danced the Congo through Aang's brain, even as he tried to clear them. A voice cut through his fidgeting.

"You must relax Aang. With a jumpy, disjointed chi like that, you are likely to self combust." Aang smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

"Ok Iroh."

Closing his eyes, he tried again. A fly landed on his ear, making it twitch.

_'concentrate on my chi. Concentrate on it's flow.'_

His ear twitched again.

_'Chi. Concentrate on chi. Flowing chi. Chi flowing - '_

The fly flew into his ear.

"Aargh!"

Iroh shook his head. He was worse than Zuko. For a boy who frequently meditated his way into the spirit world, this boy was hopeless. It was time for a different tactic.

"Think of it as though you were bending water. You do not need strength of body as with earthbending. You do not need the physical agility of airbending. All you need is your breathing, concentration and control. Think of your chi as water flowing through you. You can control it, manipulate it, bend it to your will. Like so." Iroh produced fire from his palms and bent it fluently through a series of movements Aang recognised from his waterbending training.

"You see Aang, while they are elemental opposites, fire and water are not so different from each other. They are both flowing and dangerous, capable of creating monumental destruction. Yet both are healing."

Aang shot him a skeptical look. "how can fire be healing? I thought it was only destructive – no offense."

"None taken. That is your only experience with it." Iroh smiled. "Have you ever felt so cold that you began to freeze? Your body shuts down slowly, pulling blood from your extremities to keep your organs warm. When you're that cold, what do you build? A fire. It brings the warmth your body so desperately needs." A look of comprehension dawned on Aang's face. "Similarly, more powerful firebenders are capable of healing, similar to waterbenders. We have the deepest understanding of our chi as it produces fire from within as opposed to other benders who bend objects outside the confines of the body. Because of this understanding, we are able to allow our extra chi to flow through the hands to restore health, peace and balance to the body and clear the cause of disease. This is known as Reiki in the Fire Nation."

Aang nodded.

"Now Aang, sit down and concentrate on your breathing. Keep it steady and controlled."

Iroh smiled and sat drinking tea. They sat there for hours before Iroh set aside his cup (after finishing three pots of tea) and told Aang to stop.

"Now you have meditated, we may begin our practice. The most important thing about firebending is keeping your base firm and steady through the motions. There is no fancy footwork in firebending."

"TOUGH LUCK TWINKLETOES!!!!"

Iroh smiled.

"Now, stand like so, legs apart enough to keep you stable. Sway left to right – good. Front to back - " Aang fell flat on his face. "Not so good. Just shift a bit so you're stable. Good!" Iroh placed a leaf in his hand and lit the middle of it. "Now keep the flame from engulfing the leaf."

"What? I did this with Jeong Jeong!"

"Good!" Said Iroh with an evil grin. "Do it again."

While Aang was having his firebending lesson, Toph was helping Sokka with his hand to hand combat – sort of. A more accurate description would be Toph sitting on a rock, bending fist shaped rocks at Sokka while he helplessly tried to bash them away with his club.

"Toph! Are you trying to kill me?"

"Nope. You're just not trying hard enough. Put some backbone into it ponytail."

Sokka scowled and lowered his club slightly.

"You did not just call me pony – "

He was cut off as a well aimed rock caught him fair in the nose.

"You did dat on purpothe!" Sokka yelled at her indignantly.

"Duh. We are practicing here."

Sokka scowled – then smiled. Whipping out his trusty boomerang, he lobbed it over Toph's shoulder.

"Haha, nice try ponytail, but you missed by a mil – "

Toph was cut off as a well aimed boomerang cracked into the back of her head on it's return trip.

Sokka grinned and swaggered up to her, holding out his hand. "Truce?"

Toph lowered her head and nodded, holding out her hand. "Truce." As they clasped hands in a handshake, Toph shifted her foot in the ground so that the earth opened up and swallowed Sokka, leaving only his head and hands free. "Not." Laughing like a maniac, Toph left him and wandered back to watch Iroh and Aang.

"Toph! Toph! TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPH! LET ME OUT! NOW! WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE I PROMISE I'M GONNA GET ALL FREAKY ON YOU! YOU WON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH YOURSELF! TOPH! Toph? No seriously... please let me out! I don't like holes. They don't agree with me. They want me to go vegetarian! That's what happened last time! Toph? I DON'T WANT TO EAT VEGETABLES ALL THE TIME!!!!"

Aang and Iroh paused in their bending practice for a moment.

"Did you hear something?" Aang asked.

"I think so."

Both shrugged and continued their bending practice. At that moment, Toph slunk through the bushes towards them.

"Iroh, do you mind if I borrow Aang for a moment? There is an ideal opportunity for him to practice – _accuracy_ with his bending – a one off." Her face maintained it's solemn expression, but it did not reach her sightless eyes. They danced evilly.

"Of course. Aang needs a break anyway."

_**...o0o...**_

Yeah, well, that's the next chapter. I'm not sure if it was any good to be totally honest... I was sort of desperate to get this one 'out of the way' so I could do the next one. It is a filler really. No real point – just bumbling along. Hope it was ok – I don't want my readers eyes to bleed. x


	15. Chapter 15: On the Road Again

_**Chapter 15: On the Road Again**_

hi hi hi! Here is the next chapter! Lets all see a Mexican wave of celebration! Woooo! Ok. I'm over it now. This one should be really quite the fun one to write – with more point than the last one. The last one made me cry it was so bad. I'm actually thinking of deleting it and pretending it never existed... Ah well. Hope you like it! X

_**...o0o...**_

It was a dark and rainy night. The beaten dirt roads were empty – only the echo of the daily bustle haunted the abandoned streets as the townsfolk sheltered in their houses. Two shadows flicked down the streets unnoticed, splashing slightly in the puddles of water pooled by the roadside. They slunk down a dark alley and disappeared from view of any windows. Slipping through a side door of a shop, they stole quietly through. _Thank heavens these people are so foolish as to trust one another enough to keep their doors unlocked,_ Zuko thought to himself as he whipped fruit, rice and other edible goods into the bag Katara held. Katara was not looking at Zuko as he took the items from the shelves and threw them unceremoniously into the bag she held – she still felt that they shouldn't be stealing. The need, however, was there – they had no money and no food. She turned briefly to see if Zuko felt the same way about this, but quickly turned back again as she remembered that their emotions and identities were shielded by the twin masks. Sighing, she closed her eyes and waited for Zuko to finish.

"Alright, I think that should do it." Katara started as Zuko broke the silence that had closed in around them. "I think we should get going before we're caught." Katara nodded and followed him out back the way they had come. As Zuko turned to head back to their campsite, Katara stopped him.

"Wait – I think we should get at least one more set of clothes each. Ours are ruined almost beyond repair."

"You can't be serious. We'd be caught!"

"Come on, We need more clothes, you know it as well as I do."

Zuko winced, knowing it was true. Closing his eyes and rubbing his temples, the boy conceded.

"Fine, fine. Only one new set each though. We can't take too much from these people – a town this size could hardly cope with too many losses in one go like this." Katara ogled at him. The longer she spent with him, the more she came to realise how human this boy was. He had certainly grown from the Avatar-crazed boy she had first encountered in the South Pole.

"Move it waterbender!" Zuko hissed. She had been so wrapped up in her thoughts, she barely noticed that he had begun to slink away into the night. Running after him she hissed,

"Since when do you call me waterbender?"

"Since forever. You just haven't heard me say it. Now come on!"

The sun began to peek over the hills, spreading it's rays over an already awake Zuko. He stretched and meditated briefly before starting to get some breakfast together quickly. He knew they would have to move pretty quickly to avoid being caught by the townsfolk. They would notice that they had been broken into, and they would be quick to blame nearby outsiders before they would even consider one of their own responsible. It would be a jail first, beat up second, torture third, ask questions much, much, much later situation.

Katara wrinkled her nose in her sleep, able to smell Zuko's cooking. It wasn't a bad smell... it was just unusual that she wasn't the one doing the cooking. Sitting up and rubbing her eyes, she looked at him questioningly.

"We have to get going, fast. We don't want anyone catching up with us, trust me." Passing her a plate of food, he added, "Eat quickly. We don't have time for any washing or anything like that – we need to get moving as soon as possible." With that, he began shoveling his food down with the seasoned experience of a man who had a childhood devoid of a mother to tell him to slow down before he gave himself indigestion.

"Zuko, slow down before you give yourself indigestion." Zuko just rolled his eyes and kept eating. It was a long time since he had heard those words last.

"I'm perfectly capable of eating quickly and avoiding indigestion."

Katara shook her head. Sometimes his similarity to Sokka amazed her. Nonetheless, they both ate as quickly as they could, barely stopping to chew their food. The sun was just over the hills when they finally got moving.

It was midday and the sun was blazing. Katara struggled to keep up with Zuko, unused to traveling without a flying bison. "Catch up," Zuko called after her.

"Zuko, I'm hot, I'm tired and I'm hungry. Can't we take a break?"

"Not if you want to stay out of a slimy prison cell."

"But Zuko, I can't - "

"Just think about something else. Try to take your mind off it."

Katara ran a few steps so she was in line with him again. She looked up at him sheepishly.

"I know what would help – but you have to promise not to laugh." Zuko's bemused glance was the only response she had to work with.

"Have you ever played a traveling game?"

"A traveling game?"

"Yeah. You know... like... there's the animal game. You go through the alphabet and say three animals that start with each letter." Seeing his irked expression, Katara hastily continued. "There's also 'have you ever'. You ask each other questions like... have you ever tripped over a mollusk... or have you ever cried over a song... you know, that kind of thing. You can find out all sorts of interesting things. Most embarrassing moments, worst fears, favorite things, all sorts! You wanna play?" She gave Zuko her very best wide-eyed 'don't say no to me, I'm too cute' puppy face.

"Fine. Have you ever tripped over a mollusk?"

Katara just stared at him. "You do know that was only an example. You don't need to – "

"Answer the question Katara."

"No."

"There, now was that so hard? Your turn."

"Ok..." Katara's face contorted in concentration as she tried to think of a good question. "Have you ever gone penguin sledding?"

"Penguin sledding? No. Have you ever eaten a papaya?"

"Yes. I discovered that I hate Papaya."

"Me too." Zuko grinned.

"Ok, ok, my turn. Um... have you ever... screamed like a girl?" The look in her eye was positively evil.

"Once. Azula set my pants on fire when I was six. Never happened again thank you very much." Zuko answered with an air of feigned dignity, trying to ignore Katara's giggling. "Have you ever killed anyone?" Katara's giggling stopped.

"No. Have you?"

"No."

"Really?" Katara asked skeptically.

"Yes, really. Is it your turn or mine now?"

"Yours."

"Fine. Have you ever... um... this is stupid. I can't think of anything. Can't you go now? You just copied my last question anyway." They both walked along in silence for a moment. The sky was coming over cloudy, probably bringing rain for that afternoon. Zuko had to admit, it was a very hot day. _'There'll probably be a storm this afternoon,'_ He thought to himself as they walked. Katara's voice suddenly cut through his reverie.

"Have you ever had a girlfriend?"

Zuko looked slightly miffed, but answered anyway. "No. When I was back in the Fire Nation, Mai had a thing for me... but never acted on it. I never felt anything for her... so, no. Hey, can we just ask straight out questions instead of this 'have you ever' thing?"

"I guess so." Katara answered.

"Good. Have you ever wanted to leave the avatar and return home?"

"...Hang on. Why did you want to know if you could ask any question, then ask me a 'have you ever'?"

Zuko smirked. "Just wanted to know if I _could. _You know... in case I feel like it later. Anyway, answer the question."

Katara scuffed her toe on the ground and mumbled something unintelligible.

"Didn't catch that. You're going to have to speak up," He smirked.

"I have. I have thought about doing that many times – but straight afterwards I feel so guilty. He needs me. I'm his teacher, his friend, and while I hate to admit it, I'm the closest thing he has to a mother. I have a responsibility to him now. To the whole group. I couldn't just pack up and leave them – not even if I wanted to."

To Katara's surprise, there was no smirk or back handed comment from Zuko. Instead, he remained silent and pensive, mulling over her words.

"Have you ever wanted to join us?"

"No." His reply was so immediate it startled her.

"Why not?"

"It's not your turn to ask a question anymore Katara."

"What? I'm just extending my question, and that's allowed - "

"Nope. Separate question, separate turn. My go. What is your worst fear?"

Katara stopped walking and looked at the sky, hugging herself.

"My worst fear..." She trailed off, closing her eyes. "My worst fear is that I won't be able to protect the ones I love. That no matter how hard I fight, or how good I get at waterbending, that I won't be able to help them. I think that's it."

"You think that's it, or that is it?"

"Well, there is another one... That I will end up alone. That at the end of all this, even if we manage to win the war and regain peace and safety for everyone... that I will have no one to enjoy it with. That I'll grow old alone, die alone..." Her last words were barely audible, but Zuko managed to catch them. He had to admit, it was surprising. He had always thought of her as a strong willed girl who wouldn't be affected by such thoughts. She was pretty too... surely she had had a boyfriend? These fears, however, suggested otherwise. Before he could get any further into his reverie, Katara spoke up.

"How 'bout you? What is your worst fear?"

Again, without hesitation he answered her.

"That I will never get to return home, restore my honour and reclaim my place as heir to the throne."

Katara just stared at him.

"Ok, pausing the game for a second. Why were you banished anyway? What did you do? You're always talking about restoring your honour but I never understood why."

"It's... complicated. And long..."

"Good thing this is a long road and we have the rest of the night ahead of us then."

Zuko looked away. He had never really spoken about his banishment to anyone before. He had referred to it, alluded to it, had it spoken about in front of him – yet never had he ever told anyone about it before. He wasn't sure where to start, or how to find the right words. He wasn't even completely sure that he wanted to talk about it. There was something about this girl though, something he couldn't place, that made him tell her. He told her about the war meeting and his speaking up, and how it led to his banishment. She was the perfect audience, delivering just the right balance of silence, sympathy and anger. Soon he found himself wanting to explain more fully about his life before banishment, so that she would understand where he was coming from. He told her about how his mother left, his constant torment by Azula and his father's disappointment in him. Everything that he had been bottling up for years seemed to just come bubbling to the surface and overflowed in the time he was speaking. By the time he had finished it was well after dusk, and they were seated side by side under a tree.

"I may be over the line, but I don't think I would want to go back to a place like that. If my dad didn't care about me and scarred me like that, and I had a sister that wanted to kill me, I'd run away. The first chance I got. What makes you want to go back Zuko? What is it that draws you back there?"

He knew his answer should be something like, 'family' or 'bonds' or 'duty to his people'. However, nothing came to mind. He couldn't think of a single good reason to return home.

_Maybe, just maybe, _Zuko thought to himself, _Uncle was right. Maybe it's not what I really want anymore._ In his silence, Katara had fallen asleep, propped against the tree beside him. Zuko leaned his head back against the tree and gazed at the stars. Now he had confused himself. He had finally come to the realisation that he really did not want to go back home. If that was the case, however, he had lost his purpose. He now had no idea what he was going to do, he had no goal, no aims, no direction. He stayed up for hours thinking, before finally drifting off to sleep with one last thought - _What is it that I want?_

_**...o0o...**_

Hey there people! I'm really sorry for taking so long! I have just started university and am kinda drowning in work at the moment. Not quite sure how to manage it all. I kept finding that my mind was straying though. Plot bunnies kept visiting me whenever I least expected it, and demanded immediate attention. No matter how hard I tried to beat them away, I couldn't. Hence, here I am once more, writing again.

I really hoped you liked it. I really did enjoy writing this one. I'm out of practice though, so if any of it is clunky or spelled incorrectly or anything, just give me a yell and I'll fix it.

Ciao

xx


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